How to Write a Novel

I hope you laughed when you read that title. There isn't one correct way to write a novel any more than there's one correct way to read one. You can read it on an e-reader, on your computer or on paper. You can read it all in one sitting, one chapter a day or one page a month.

I've read some descriptions of how other authors write. Some of them have the whole thing mapped out, with timelines and character studies and everything, before they even write. Some mystery writers start at the end and work their way to the beginning. Most of them know what's going to happen before they begin.

Not me.

That shouldn't surprise you too much. After all, I write for fun and I just don't see the fun in creating a bunch of outlines and lists before I start the story. Writing should be a voyage of discovery, as exciting for the writer as it is for the reader. I use a map when I go on vacation, but not when I write a novel.

I usually start out with a compelling scene. For Outsider, it was the image of Sean floating in space alone after his ship was attacked. For Another Shot, it was the spaceship Outsider crashing. (Sorry about the spoiler, but you really should have read Another Shot by now, right?)

Once I have that scene in mind, I write it. I take the image in my head and describe it to the best of my ability. Then I sit back and wonder how this thing happened. What led up to it? So I go back and write whatever it takes to explain why Sean was in a prison ship or why the spaceship crashed.

The most important thing I do is to listen to my characters. If I stay true to them, they will lead me through what happens next. When I first started, I didn't know them very well so we took a few wrong turns, but as they became more familiar to me, they guided me through each scene and eventually through the whole story.

So believe it or not, I have no idea what's going to happen in the novel until I write it.

How's that for fun??


Please keep mentioning my novels to your friends, family and acquaintances. Sales are at a standstill and I'd like to drum up a little interest before I release In The Shadows. Thanks for your support!